The Brothers Grimm: The Beginning of a New Team
by rider-of-snakes
Summary: When Jacob finds himself on the wrong side of a frozen lake, it is up to a strange girl from a strange land to save him. Who is this girl, and how is she going to get home? Set after the movie.


**The Brothers Grimm**

The Beginning of a New Team Grimm

**Disclaimer****: I own nothing…but if I did, Will would be scrubbing my roof while Jacob and I sipped margaritas.**

**Summary****: When Jacob finds himself on the wrong side of a frozen lake, it is up to a strange girl from a strange land to save him. Who is this girl, and how is she going to get home? Set after the movie.**

**A/N****: I have no knowledge of any German towns with lakes, so please bear with my made up cockamamie…R&R!!!**

Chapter 1 A Bedtime Story

As Jacob Grimm sat atop a short, brick wall just outside the small inn at which he and his brother had stopped for the night, the dimming light made it progressively harder for him to write in his worn journal. He pushed his glasses up on his nose, hoping that it would increase his visibility. It did no such thing, however, so he sighed angrily and ran a frustrated hand through his short-cropped, light-brown hair.

"It just doesn't make any sense!" Jacob thought aloud.

"What doesn't Jake?" said a voice from directly in front of Jacob. The voice was so unexpected that Jacob was startled from his perch atop the wall and landed face first in the snow. Jacob immediately recognized the mocking laughter that came next as belonging to his older brother Wilhelm Grimm.

When Jacob recovered from the initial shock of being startled from the small partition, he shot an angry glare at his brother from his place in the snow. Will however, almost doubled over laughing, did not catch the look. Jacob, taking advantage of his distracted brother, formed a roughly made snowball in his hands. Without warning Jacob hurled the snowball with such force that it hit Will upside his dirty-blonde head, knocking him down into the snow as well.

Will looked stunned for a moment; then he began to laugh even harder than before. At this, Jacob also began to laugh. It was one of the few fleeting moments of happiness the brothers had experienced in the days since they had defeated the witch of Marbarden forest. Though Will had apologized for not believing in Jacob, he had yet to abandon his ever cynical nature.

After recovering somewhat, Will turned to face his little brother.

"Well, you never answered me…what doesn't make sense?" Jacob went rigid. Whenever Jacob was coerced into revealing the contents of his journal, Will would yell, "Beans, Jake!" As if he didn't already feel guilty enough for what happened to Lotte.

He just shook his head, "It was nothing Will…I was just talking to myself."

Will looked at him suspiciously then shrugged and stood up, brushing off the snow that had accumulated on various parts of his clothing.

"Well then we should go in. In case you hadn't noticed professor, it's getting late." Jacob looked around as the last rays of light glinted off of the lustrous white powder. It was peaceful, and he wished that it would last forever.

Unfortunately, Will had already planned to head for a village in the north tomorrow morning. He had high hopes that they would find a new team to assist them in their devious trade.

After relishing in the frigid evening air a few moments longer, Jacob shoved himself up from the ground and joined his brother on the short trek back to the inn where they were staying.

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Once inside the cozy inn, the brothers shook off their boots, hung up their coats, greeted a few unfamiliar travelers, then walked silently up the creaking stairs and toward their shared room.

There, Jacob flopped down on his bed and set his book on the nightstand next to him. Will walked over to the far wall to add another log to the already blazing fireplace. As he lay there, Jacob noticed that his eyes were burning slightly. 'Just tired,' he thought. Without a word, he rolled over on his side and fell asleep.

Will waited quietly for Jake to fall asleep. When the steady rise and fall of Jake's chest convinced Will that his brother was indeed sleeping peacefully, he got up slowly and quietly. He made his way across the room as silently as he could.

When Will arrived at his brother's bedside, he did something he had deemed forbidden to himself a long time ago. He reached down and snatched Jake's book from the table. Gracefully, he retreated back to the safety of the fireplace to seek his answers.

It seemed to Will that recent events had uncovered a part of him that he had thought buried with his little sister Lotte. He was worried; worried about Jake. No matter how hard he tried to get through that armor, Jake would just fall back further into his fairy tales and stories.

Will opened the book and flipped to the middle. His brother's familiar scrawl stood out in sharp contrast to the off-white pages. Not seeing anything of interest, he kept turning the pages, not entire sure what he was supposed to be looking for.

Finally, he came across a picture Jake had drawn. Unlike the other small sketches that littered the book, this picture took an entire page. It was a portrait of a beautiful woman, wrapped in a blanket of stars. In her delicate hands she held seven sleeping children. Her hair was as black as night itself, and Will suspected that it was, in fact her hair which held the stars around her.

Will was entranced. He quickly resolved that she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. After the initial shock, he wondered where Jake learned to draw so well. His eyes then wandered to the caption underneath the picture. It said:

_Lavrina – The Phoenician Goddess of the innocent and protectorate of the souls who were removed from the world before their time. _

Will pondered at this for a moment, then turned the page. On the next page, his brother seemed to have ceased writing random notes. The writing was structured, like that of a published book.

_Lavrina was born into a poor family by Phoenician standards. Her father was but a lowly fisherman with a family to support. _

_When she turned eighteen, it was required of her to marry someone of her father's choosing. Lavrina, however, had already fallen madly in love with the carpenter's son. Her father felt that her beauty was far too magnificent to waste on a mere carpenter's son. So, he sent off for the Lords of the land to hold an auction, in which the highest bidder was to win Lavrina's hand in marriage. _

_What her father didn't understand was that her hesitancy spawned from the fact that she was pregnant outside of wedlock. Lavrina tried everything in her power to convince her father to let her marry the carpenter's son. Her father, however, felt that he was doing what was best for his daughter by not allowing her to marry someone just as poor as themselves._

_Every night Lavrina would cry herself to sleep, praying to whatever god was listening, that her soon-to-be husband would understand her predicament and allow her to keep the child._

_The night of the auction finally came. Lavrina's father used every coin they had to buy her the most radiant dress that could be found in their small costal town. It was white, as if for a wedding, and was made of hand woven silk from a far away land. Her deep black, flowing hair was untouched, yet it reflected every stray beam of light. She truly looked like a goddess come to Earth._

_Every eye was on her as she gracefully crossed the pebble street leading up to the town square. As she arrived in the center, she was quickly overwhelmed by the lavish attentions of men representing every race, shape, size, and upbringing. After her father was able to quell the chaos, the men took their places and readied themselves to give up every last ounce of wealth for her beautiful hand in marriage. _

_After many hours, the auction was over and a husband had been chosen. He was tall and had a light complexion, indicating that he was most likely not from their side of the ancient Pedegrin Sea. Once the man had paid Lavrina's father and she had a chance for a few brief good-byes, they sailed away into the sun, never to be heard from again._

Will gave an exasperated yawn. He hadn't realized how late it was becoming. The windows outside the inn were covered in the snow and mist of the very earliest hours of the morning, long before the sun is due to rise. He looked away from the yellowing pages and turned his gaze to the dying fire. It flickered pathetically in it's hearth in an attempt to appear warm and inviting. Will, however, was not fooled.

The cold, which he had not realized was making its way into his very bones, was winning the battle against finishing the epic tale. He knew there was more written on the pages following the one it lay open to now. Yet, he knew that if he turned that cursed page, he would once again be unmercifully drawn into the world of the Phoenician princess and her trials and tribulations, unable to resurface until the end was revealed.

Soooooooo…How was it? I have had this idea bouncing around for a while, so review and let me know if I should continue, or if it's a flop. ; ))


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